TrainedtoDestroy by Viola Grace Read Free Book Online Page B

growling in her arms, and when Penodal reached out to touch her arm, he snapped at the archivist with his little beak.
    Penodal quickly opened the door with the same security protocols that the entry required.
    Rathi walked out with a distinct stride as she called out, “Thank you that was helpful.”
    It wasn’t quite a run, but she made her way out of the Citadel at the most decorous speed she could manage. The moment she was clear of the building, she took off and headed back to the base for some meditation and some time to make out the details of what she had picked up. One thing rang in her mind over and over. She was not alone.
     
    She paced back and forth in her room, Targo was romping in the open garden just outside her balcony and Jarrod had not answered her ping. If they sent him off world without letting him say goodbye, she would not forgive them.
    A knock on her door brought her head around. She quickly opened it and hauled Jarrod inside.
    He was confused. “What?”
    “They made more than one.”
    His eyes widened. “You? They made more than one of you?”
    “Not exactly like me. A goddess of the elements and a goddess of green nature. There are two more out there. Or there were. I don’t know if they are still alive, but I want to find out. How can I access the archive without Penodal groping me again?”
    Jarrod changed colour. “He did what?”
    “He put his hand on my waist and tried to get me to agree to see him in a social venue.”
    Jarrod’s hands clenched and released in irritation. “I will have to address that.”
    “So, when are you heading out on your next assignment?”
    She sat on the edge of her bed and stroked the fabric with her hands.
    To her surprise, he knelt in front of her, leaving his head just slightly below hers. “I leave in a day. It is a non-essential assignment, but they want someone there just in case.”
    Rathi caught on. “You can’t tell me because it is classified.”
    He nodded. “Correct. Will you be all right when they send you to Resko-Devi?”
    She shrugged. “I think so. I hope so.” Before she could change her mind, she held his head in her hands and pressed a soft kiss to his lower lip.
    He trembled in her hands, and she followed her first kiss with six more, each slowly taking one of his lips between her own as she learned the different sensations that ran through her with every light touch.
    He gripped her waist and held her lightly as he tilted his head to increase their connection.
    When she stopped and looked into his eyes, his slow smile brought her back to him as he slowly stood and bore her back to the bed.
    With delicate touches, he eased her out of her bodysuit, pausing to let her halt him if she chose to. She opted to let things run their course.
    His clothing disappeared under her hands, and she felt a wince of guilt when she realized he wasn’t going to have anything to wear back to his room. Ah, well. His skin felt too good under her fingers to regret anything for long.
    Jarrod moved over her, into her and they rocked together until she felt the strange sensation of leaving her own body in a burst of energy. When her system settled, she was curled against him, and he was on his side, stroking her slowly from shoulder to knee.
    She shivered and looked up at him. “So, I can’t see how cloning ever caught on.”
    He grinned and kissed her with a hand on her belly. “I think you need to get a meal. I will join you in the dining hall, all right?”
    Rathi kissed him back. “I am sorry about your clothing.”
    He chuckled and pressed his lips to the back of her hand as he faded from sight. “Oh.”
    The tip of one breast felt the flick of a tongue before the door to her room opened and closed. She giggled. “I forgot about that.”
    Rathi got to her feet and wobbled into the lav, taking a quick solar shower so that she wouldn’t feel sticky. A fresh suit and a quick brush of her hair later and she was on her way to the dining hall.
    An